Tab dispenser for staple gun



May 28, 1968 w. DOWNIE TAB DISPENSER FOR STAPLE GUN 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.4

Filed June 15, 1967 INVENTOR. lV/ZZ/A/V flay/w;

FIG.I

y 28, 1968 w. DOWNIE 3,385,498

TAB DISPENSER FOR STAPLE GUN Filed June 15, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet FIG.8

INVENTOR.

h// //'a m 00 WI: 1?

United States Patent 3,385,498 TAB DISPENSER FOR STAPLE GUN William Downie, 6 Stem Place, Valley Cottage, N.Y. 10989 Filed June 13, 1967, Ser. No. 645,742 Claims. (Cl. 227-18) mow-Hue ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention is directed to a tab dispenser for conventional hand staple guns and is comprised of a combination of a staple gun, a tabta'pe dispensing magazine, a tab tape guide and re-enforcing tabs. The magazine is mounted on the staple gun and the guide is mounted on the front of the gun. The tab tape passes from the tab tape dispensing magazine through the tab tape guide and is fed into the work as the user operates the actuating handle.

Background of the invention Summary of the invention The present invention relates to tab dispensing apparatus for staple re-enforcing tabs and re-enforcing tabs for use with staple guns which are magazine fed and have spring actuated drivers.

Objects of the invention It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and useful tab tape feeding mechanism for feeding a tab tape into association with the article being stapled for reenforcing the article in the area of the applied staple.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a re-enforcing tab tape feed mechanism for automatically feeding tabs which enlarge the surface area of the cross member of the staple and which is adjustable for varying the length of the re-enforcing tab in accordance with the fastener application and which is adapted for timely shearing of the re-enforcing tab from the remaining tab tape after the tab is retained in association with the material being stapled by the projecting prongs of the staple.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved mechanism for automatically feeding a single re-enforcing tab for each cycle of the staple gun.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in part hereinafter pointed out. The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter described.

Description of the invention The present invention permits a substantial increase in the holding area of the staple as compared to staples which are not so re-enforced. Re-enforced staples have substantial advantages where increased holding power is desired, where it is necessary to employ insulated staples, where it is necessary to provide a cushion effect during stapling to minimize staple damage, where it is necessary to minimize the rust line which might otherwise result in the presence of moisture on the surface of the material being stapled and where it is necessary to provide penetration control in stapling of soft material. Many ice other advantages of re-enforced staples will be obvious to these skilled in the art.

The apparatus of the present invention provides a simple, inexpensive and economical means by which staples can now be re-enforced during actual use. The operator has the option, merely by adjustment of the device, of re-enforcing or not re-enforcing the staples at any time.

In the accompanying drawings in which are shown several illustrative embodiments of the invention:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a staple gun embodying the automatic tab dispenser of the invention;

FZGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the staple gun showing the tab dispensing magazine, tab tape and front nose piece guide;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the nose piece guide of the present invention;

FEGURE 4 is an enlarged partly broken away perspective view of the tab dispenser magazine;

FIGURE 5 is a side elevational view of a staple gun embodying the automatic tab dispenser of the present invention showing the application of a staple and tab to a surface;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a tab and staple applied to a surface;

FIGURE 7 is a side elevational view of a staple gun showing another embodiment of the automatic tab dispenser of the invention;

FIGURE 8 is a front elevational view of the staple gun of FIGURE 7 showing the tab dispensing magazine, tab roll and front nose piece guide;

FIGURE 9 is a perspective view of the nose piece guide of the dispenser shown in FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 10 is a side elevational view of a staple gun embodying the automatic tab feed arm of the present invention showing the application of a staple and tab to a surface.

Referring now to the drawings in detail and in particular to FIGURE 1, a combined automatic tab tape dispenser magazine and tab tape dispenser nose piece guide have been designated in their entirety at 10 and 11 respectively and are shown as being operatively installed on staple gun l2. Staple gun 12 may be of any suitable type and for illustrative purposes herein, is shown as being in the form of a conventional hand operated staple gun.

Briefly, the staple gun involves in its general construction a main body portion 13 having a hand hole 14 and a lower straight horizontal edge 15, a nose portion 16 having a pair of rearwardly extending side cars 17 and 18 and an actuating handle 19.

The tab tape dispensing magazine assembly 10 as shown in FIGURE 2 comprises a front wall 20 from which eX- tend rearwardly side wall members 21. The rear portion of side walls 21 are extended at right angles to each other to form lower horizontal support member 22. Structural rigidity is provided 'by front Wall 2% and lower horizontal support member 22. If desired, further rigidity may be provided by ribs 23. Front wall 20 is also extended forwardly and downwardly and formed with inwardly eX- tending lip 24 at its lower horizontal edge to provide front clamping means. The lower forward edges of side walls 211 are extended downwardly and formed with an inwardly extending lip 25 at their lower horizontal edge to provide side clamping means. Side walls 21 are alsointerconnected by a cross bolt 26 and spacer sleeve (not. shown) which serves as a tape reel spindle and provides additional rigidity to the structure.

The tab dispensing guide 11 as shown in FIGURE 3 comprises a front wall 28 the bottom portion of which xtends rearwardly and from which extend rearwardly side wall members 29. Side Walls 29 have rearwardly extending lower ears 3% and rearwardly extending upper ears 31. The rear vertical edge of rearwardly extending upper cars 31 and the extreme upp r portion of rear vertical edge of rearwardly extending lower ears 30 are formed to fit around bolts in side ears 17 and 18. The rear vertical edges of rearwardly extending lower ears 30 are formed with an inwardly extending lip 32 which forms lower clamping means. The upper rear portion of the horizontal edge of rearwardly extended upper cars 31 is formed with an inwardly extending 11p 33.

Referring to FIGURE 4, the device of the present invention is shown with a tab tape reel containing prescored tab tape 35 rotatably mounted in magazine on spindle 26, tab tape 35 passing through tab dispenser giude assembly 11 and shown ready for application when broken at score line 38.

Having described the construction of the tab tape dispensing device of the present invention in combination with a typical staple gun, its assembly and operation will now be described.

In assembling the apparatus, tab dispensing guide 11 is placed on nose portion 16 of staple gun 12, and is firmly held in position by inwardly extending lips 32 which engage the rear vertical Wall of nose piece 16 and by inwardly extending lips 33 which engage the upper horizontal edge of nose piece 16. Tab tape dispensing magazine 10 is loaded by inserting reel 34 containing tab tape 35 between magazine side walls 21 and fastening it in position with spindle cross bolt 26.

Tab tape dispensing magazine 10 is mOunted on staple gun 12 by inserting actuator handle 19 rearwardly through opening 27 in tab tape dispensing magazine 10 and snapping inwardly extending lips 24 and 25 onto the lower horizontal side and front edges of actuating handle 19 so the lips engage the edges and lock the tab tape dispensing magazine on the-handle.

Tab tape is threaded between the back side of tab tape dispensing guide assembly front wall 28 and the front of nose piece 16. The gap between the front wall of the nose piece and the back side of tab dispensing guide assembly front wall 28 may be adjustable if desired to accommodate tabs of difierent thicknesses. A fixed gap, as shown in FIGURE 1 is obtainable by predetermining the gap and adjusting the length of the upper and lower rearwardly extending ears accordingly. Adjustable gaps can be obtained by having guide front wall 28 slidably fastened (not shown) to side walls 29 or by other means as will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

Once assembled, the device is put into operation merely by sliding the first tab to position its score line below the lower horizontal edge of guide front wall 28. Staple gun 12 is pressed down with a forward motion against the object to be stapled thus forcing tab 37 into association with the material. Depressing actuator handle 19 forces a staple through tab 37 and the material being stapled. The impact shock caused by the ejection of the staple from staple gun 12 breaks the tab from the remaining tab tape along score line 38 as shown in FIGURE 5. When actuator handle 19 is depressed to eject a staple, tab dispensing magazine assembly 10' is moved downwardly and rearwardly by the action, causing a portion of the tab tape 35 on reel 34 to unwind. The length of each tab on tab tape 35 as measured between two adjacent score lines will be approximately the length of the stroke as measured by the relative positions of inwardly extending lip 24 when actuator handle 19 is in the fully depressed and released position.

Upon release of actuator handle 19 and raising of the apparatus from the work surface, tab dispensing magazine moves forward and upwardly and by such motion moves the entire length of tape through tab tape dispenser guide 11 a distance equal to the length of the stroke. By such movement another tab is moved into position as shown in FIGURE 1 and the cycle may be repeated.

If a tab re-enforcement is not desired while the apparatus is assembled, the user merely needs to slide the tape upward until no tab projects below the bottom horizontal edge of tab dispenser guide 11. In this position the device may be used continuously without tabs being fed to the work. When the user desires to have the device operate again it is only necessary to slide one tab below the lower horizontal edge of tab dispenser guide 11.

Other embodiments of the present invention are shown in FIGURES 7-10. In FIGURE 7 a combined automatic tab tape dispenser magazine and tab tape dispenser nose piece guide have been designated in their entirety at 40 and 41 respectively and are shown as being operatively installed on staple gun 42. Staple gun 42 may be of any suitable type and for illustrative purposes herein, is shown as being in another form of a conventional hand operated staple gun.

Briefly, the staple gun is substantially the same as shown in FIGURE 1 and involves in its general construction a main body portion 43 having a hand hole 44 and a lower straight horizontal edge 45, a nose portion 46 and an actuating handle 47.

The tab tape dispensing magazine assembly 40 as shown in FIGURES 7 and 8 comprises a fiat, cylindrical container 48 of dimensions sufiicient to receive a roll of tab tape 49 and having slot 50 located along its circumference to permit passage of the tab tape 51 therethrough. Tab tape dispensing magazine assembly 40 is slidably mounted between a pair of support arms 52. Arms 52 are secured to actuating handle 47, are connected by arm cross member 53 and are provided with a removable tab tape dispenser magazine retaining pin 54 and spaced holes 55 and 56 adapted to receive tab dispenser magazine retaining pin 54. Secured to actuating handle 47 and lying in a plane substantially parallel therewith are a pair of tab tape feed arms 57 connected by tab tape feed arm cross member 58. Tab tape feed arm cross member 58 has mounted thereon tab tape feed finger 59 and which projects downwardly therefrom and is adapted at its lower end to engage the horizontal score lines 60 in tab tape 51.

The tab dispensing guide 41 as shown in FIGURE 9 comprises a vertical wall 61, the bottom portion of which extends rearwardly, lower side wall guide members 62 and 63, side wall clamp members 64 having lock ear 65 and upper side wall guide members 66 which are extended inwardly at right angles to said vertical wall to form upper tab tape dispensing guide support 68. Slot 69 is located between upper tab tape dispensing guide support 67 and horizontal top guide member 68 to permit passage of tab tape between said members.

Referring to FIGURE 10, the device of the present invention is shown with actuating handle 47 in the depressed position, showing the staple passing through tab and the relative position of feed finger 59.

Having described the construction of the tab tape dispensing device of the present embodiment in combination with a typical staple gun, its assembly and operation will now be described.

In assembling the apparatus, tab tape dispensing guide 41 is placed on nose portion 46 of staple gun 42, and is firmly held in position by side wall clamp members 64 and lock ear 65 which engage the front side wall of nose piece 46 and by horizontal top guide member 67 which engages the upper horizontal edge of nose piece 46. Tab tape dispensing magazine 10 is loaded by inserting tab tape roll 49 into magazine 48.

Tab dispenser magazine retaining pin 54 may be left in position or may be inserted into spaced holes 55 or 56 to adjust the tab length.

Once assembled the device is put into operation merely by sliding the tab tape through slot 69 in tab tape dispensing guide 41 and between side wall guide members until the lower edge of tab tape feed finger 59 engages a score line and the first tab is positioned with its score line below the lower horizontal edge of guide vertical wall 61. Staple gun 42 is pressed down against the object to be stapled thus forcing a tab into association with the material. Depressing actuator handle 47 forces a staple through the tab and the material being stapled. The impact shock caused by the ejection of the staple from the staple gun breaks the tab 70 from the remaining tab tape along score line 71. When actuator handle 47 is depressed to eject a staple, tab dispensing magazine assembly 40 slides downwardly along arms 52 until it engages tab dispenser magazine retaining pin 54 by the action, causing a portion of the tab tape 49 to unwind.

Tabs of varying length may be used merely by shifting the position of tab dispenser magazine retaining pin 54.

Upon release of actuator handle 47, the tab dispensing magazine moves forward and upwardly and by such motion moves the entire length of tape through tab dispenser guide 41 a distance equal to the length of the stroke. By such movement another tab is moved into position as shown in FIGURE 1 and the cycle may be repeated.

Simultaneously with the action of the magazine motion, as the actuator handle is depressed, the feed finger 59 is moved forwardly and upwardly in an are away from guide 61. Upon release of actuator handle 47, feed finger 59 constructed of a stiff resilient material contacts the surface of tab tape 49 and slides along the surface until it engages a score line upon engaging the score line, the feed finger continues its downward motion moving the tape with it. Feed finger 59 is adjustable thus permitting it to feed tabs of varying lengths as desired.

While FIGURES 7-10 show a staple gun with the tape magazine mounted on an arm attached to the actuating handle in which position the motion of the magazine and feed finger 59 co-act as the mechanism for the tape, the tape magazine may be mounted on any other part of the staple gun provided the tape is fed through guide 41. In such case the feed finger acts as the sole tab tape feed mechanism and the tape magazine serves solely as a tape supply container.

If a tab re-enforcernent is not desired while the apparatus is assembled, the user merely needs to slide the tape upward until no tab projects below the feed finger. In this position the device may be used continuously without tabs being fed to the work. When the user desires to have the device operate again it is only necessary to slide one tab below the feed finger so the finger can engage a tab score line.

The tape may typically be a plastic material such as vinyl plastic linoleum seam binding, although it is to be understood that any other suitable material may be used.

While the present invention has been shown with reference to several illustrative embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is not limited thereto, reference being had to the appended claims for a definition of the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A staple, re-enforcing tab, dispensing apparatus comprising a staple gun having a main body portion, a nose portion and an actuating handle, a tab tape feed mechanism, rigidly mounted on said actuating handle, a tab tape magazine and a tab tape guide.

2. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 1 wherein said tab tape guide is mounted on said nose portion.

3. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 1 wherein said tab tape feed mechanism is comprised of said tab tape magazine which is also mounted on said actuating handle.

4. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 1 wherein the tab tape feed mechanism is rigidly mounted on and spaced from said actuating handle by at least one support arm attached to said actuating handle.

5. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 4 wherein said tab tape feed mechanism is comprised of a feed finger mounted on said support arm.

6. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 4 wherein the tab tape feed mechanism is comprised of a feed finger mounted on said support arm and said tab tape magazine.

7. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 4 wherein the tab tape feed mechanism is comprised of said tab tape magazine which is also mounted on said support arm.

8. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 7 wherein the tab tape magazine is mounted between a pair of support arms.

9. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 7 wherein the tab tape magazine is slidably mounted between a pair of support arms.

10. The tab dispensing apparatus of claim 4 wherein the tab tape feed mechanism is comprised of a feed finger mounted on a first pair of support arms and said tab tape magazine which is mounted on a second pair of support arms.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,259,878 10/1941 Clancy 22776 2,331,252 10/ 1943 Van Tuyl 22776 XR 2,351,557 6/1944 Swettetal 22776 XR 2,996,720 8/ 1961 Mackechnie 22776 3,319,864 5/1967 Adams 22776 TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Primary Examiner.

GRANVILLE Y. CUSTER, Examiner. 

